Brussels, 01/02/2000 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday, the European Commission held, from 8h30, an extraordinary meeting on the consequences that developments in the situation in Austria could bring at European level. After the meeting, President Prodi came down to the press room to read the following declaration unanimously adopted by the Commission:
"The Commission notes the agreed joint view expressed by 14 Member States of the Union on January 31st and shares the concerns which underlie that decision.
The Commission will continue to fulfil its duty as guardian of the provisions and values set down in the Treaties, which provide that the Union is founded on the principles of liberty, democracy, respect of human rights and fundamental freedoms and the rule of law, as set out notably in Articles 6 and 7 of the Treaty on European Union.
At this stage the working of the European institutions is not affected. In this context, the Commission, in close contact with the Governments of the Member States, will follow the situation carefully, maintaining its working relations with the Austrian authorities".
"I make it clear", added Romano Prodi, "that I fully share the concerns underlying this statement (reproduced in yesterday's EUROPE, p.9) and I stress it is fundamental for the Commission to continue to play its role as guardian of the Treaties". In response to a question, Mr Prodi said he would call on the Austrian Commissioner Franz Fischler to resign if his party, the ÖVP, forms a government with the FPÖ.
The spokespersons for the Commission then answered a very large number of questions from journalists, stressing on several occasions that, in this matter, the Member States and the Commission had each played their own role. Mr Levi specified in particular that President Prodi had, early afternoon Monday, held a meeting with Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Guterres, who had briefed him on the approach by the Fourteen (the Commission president was therefore not "consulted" but simply "informed"). Mr Levi also pointed out that Mr Prodi had contacted the Austrian President Thomas Klestil who had told him he supported the position taken by the Commission. The Commission spokesperson said, moreover, that Mr Prodi had again spoken on Tuesday with Mr Guterres and that the latter, also, had shared the position adopted by the Commission (which, noted Mr Levi, is "in line with its role"). In answer to questions on the attitude adopted by Franz Fischler, Mr Levi simply said that Mr Fischler had of course taken part in the discussion and that the statement released on Tuesday fully reflected the "content and the climate" of this discussion.
Journalists have in vain tried to make the spokesperson say whether the Commission approved or not the decisions that the fourteen Member States planned to apply if the FPÖ under Jörg Haider came to power (suspension of official bilateral meetings at political level, contact with Austrian ambassadors in EU capitals at technical level only, refusal to support Austrian candidatures to international posts). It is not up to the Commission to judge the actions of Member States, said Mr Levi, while adding that, in the Commission declaration, there is not "a single word about distancing" from the position adopted on 31 January by the "Fourteen". The two spokespersons (Ricardo Levi and Jonathan Faull) repeated that the actions announced by the Fourteen were of a bilateral nature: the author of the statement cites "the Portuguese Presidency" because Portugal, as president-in-office, has a role of coordinator, but the Member States are perfectly free to adopt political statements without any "legal basis" in the treaties, remarked Mr Faull.
The Commission will closely follow developments in Austria, the spokespersons repeated, moreover, and Mr Faull observed that "one should not necessarily focus on Articles 6 and 7" which allow the Commission to exercise vigilance regarding compliance with the Treaty. Mr Levi mainly noted that the European Commission will very closely follow the developments concerning the Treaty's provisions in social matters.
In response to an Austrian journalist who asked why an "atomic bomb" had been used against a very small Member State, by calling it "fascist", Mr Levi said on several occasions: "I can assure you that, within the Commission, no one has stated that Austria is a fascist country. By joining the EU, Austria subscribed to very clear rules and principles, and the Commission simply wished to recall the importance of these rules and the role that it must play so that they are complied with.
We recall that Article 6 of the Treaty of Amsterdam affirms that the Union is "founded on the principles of liberty, democracy, respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, and the rule of law, principles which are common to the Member States".
Article 7 stipulates that the Council "meeting in the composition of the Heads of State or Government and acting by unanimity on a proposal by one third of the Member States or by the Commission and after obtaining the assent of the European Parliament, may determine the existence of a serious and persistent breach by a Member State of the principles mentioned in Article 6(1), after inviting the government of the Member State in question to submit its observations". "Where such a determination has been made, the Council, acting by a qualified majority, may decide to suspend certain of the rights deriving from the application of this Treaty to the Member Sates in question, including the voting rights of the representative of the government of that Member State in the Council".